


So This Is Love?

by captainofelos



Category: High School Musical: The Musical: The Series (TV)
Genre: F/M, Implied/Referenced Character Death, based on the book so this is love, big red as the fairy godfather, bowen is drizella, e.j. is mean sorry, ej is anastasia, gender-bending cinderella, gina is the prince, lynne bowen is dead, ricky is cinderella, they are aged up to 19, tw verbal abuse
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-06-08
Updated: 2020-06-10
Packaged: 2021-03-03 19:55:46
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 4,737
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24601195
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/captainofelos/pseuds/captainofelos
Summary: I really love disney classics and was reading this book and wanted to turn it into a rina au but also switching it up and making ricky be cinderella and gina be a princess
Relationships: Ricky Bowen/Gina Porter
Comments: 1
Kudos: 10





	1. Chapter 1

It was the event of the season—a royal ball in King George’s palace that every single bachelor is supposed to attend.

Ricky couldn’t believe that he was attending the ball.

He told himself that he would only stay for one dance as his carriage drew closer to the palace. If he has this one dance...even if it’s by himself he would be so happy. All Ricky Bowen wants to do is feel free and spin underneath the moon.

The castle was huge, it looked like it’s own city; Ricky could have spent the whole night in the courtyard walking around.

Ricky arrived late so there was no one at the castle gate to greet him. The halls inside were empty except for the guards standing on the walls looking down at Ricky. He didn’t have an invitation, so he was walking up the grand staircase trying to find the ballroom, he didn’t ask a guard for directions, if he did they would escort him out of the palace. If he didn’t meet the kind young girl who saw him looking for the ballroom, he would have spent the rest of the night happily wandering through the castle.

“The ballroom is right over here, mister,” she said, grabbing his hand gently and pulls him towards a door.

Embarrassed, Ricky turns to face the girl. He thought that she was one of the guards, but luckily it was another guest attending the ball-just like him. “You’re right. Thank you!!”

His cheeks were already red, he was still out of breath from climbing the giant staircase, but they got even redder after the conversation. He thought he looked so silly. Why didn’t he follow the music? He could hear faint sounds of the orchestra and the low murmurs of the king’s guest’s.

However, the young girl made no signs that she thought he was acting as an idiot. She may be acting polite; it would explain her awkward posture. But her eyes were warm and soft and as she curtised towards him, Ricky could feel something weird but warm fluttering in his chest.

“Thank you,” he repeated, bowing immediately.

“Do you...do you want to dance?”

Ricky blinked. “Can you read my mind?” she said with a small chuckle. “The only thing I wanted tonight was a dance...I haven’t danced in so long that I may have forgotten how to dance.”

When Ricky said that, the young girl laughs and she seems to relax and their interactions become less formal. She gives him a warm smile and offers him her arm. “Well, let me teach you.”

The next few minutes go by in a blur. It was a dazzling, euphoric blur and Ricky knows that he will never forget the waltz they did into the hall, and the song playing it’s way into his heart.

He also wouldn’t forget the way his dance partner looked at him-it was like they were the only two in the room. Every few seconds, she would open her mouth like she wanted to say something, but it was too loud with the music blaring that she would just shut her lips. They were lucky they didn’t bump into any other couples, but they might have been the only two dancing. Ricky couldn’t tell.

When the dance ended, Ricky mentally prepared himself to wake up from the best dream he had. Whispers from conversations replaced the orchestra’s music, different perfume scents clouded the air and the chandeliers seemed like they were glowing brighter.

Ricky expected his dance partner to create an excuse and leave, but she leaned in and whispered, “Do you want to head outside and talk a small walk? I want to show you the gardens.”

It was like she was reading his mind again. Or maybe they shared the same mind. His father used to say the same thing about him and his mother, that the second they met it was like they knew each other.

Or it may be because this was the first time in a while that Ricky made a friend, he thought as the two of them left the castle. A cool breeze tickles the back of his neck and he inhales, taking in all of the garden’s freshness.

“It’s so quiet,” he said, as he runs his fingers through the freshly planted flowers. “Is it bad if I said I would rather stay out here than go back into the ballroom?”

“And why is that?”

He hesitates, thinking about telling the truth . “I just am a lot more comfortable around flowers and trees. I’m not around a lot of people. ” Ricky shyly admits. “I don’t know what I would even say to everyone in the ballroom.”

“You came to a ball to...not meet people?”

“I came mainly to watch. To listen to the music and look at the castle. But I will say that it’s prettier outside than inside.”

“It’s definitely not as stuffy.”

The two of them laugh and Ricky can feel the weird sensation in his stomach again.

“I want to be able to remember everything from tonight,” he said. “The dancing, the flowers, the fountains—”

“And me?” his partner joked.

He smiled, but he was too nervous to answer. He wanted to remember everything about her. From the way she held his hand, which was soft but firm-like, she didn’t want to let go. To the way she smiled at him and how sweet her voice sounded when she spoke.

But he doesn’t even know her name. He would have asked when they met for the first time, but his mind was-and  _ still  _ is-in a whirlwind. And, because they danced together and walked into the garden, he felt like they were on an adventure together, and he didn’t want to stop to find out her name.

And he was scared that she would ask him where he was from.

“What are you thinking about?” she asked, she could tell that he was overthinking.

“Just that I don’t want tonight to end.” Ricky responds.

She leans in closer and Ricky tilts his head, waiting for her to say something. But she closes her lips and clears her throat, her cheeks turning slightly red.

“Me too.” She pauses. “I just got back to Salt Lake City tonight. I didn’t want to come back, but I’m starting to think that it was a good idea.”

“Oh? Where were you?”

She blinked, shocked that someone would ask, but she soon recovered. “I was at school, It’s not interesting. How about we continue our walk?”

Ricky nods. “It’s beautiful out here. It’s strange that we are the only two out here.”

“Everybody is inside,” she responds.

“Dancing?”

“Yes...or looking from the princess.”

“Ah. I’m happy to be out here. We use to have a garden...not quite as big as this one, but...wow!” Ricky spotted a rosebush a few feet away from the two of them.

“You like roses?”

“Of course.” Ricky knelt, making sure to not snag his suit on the thorns. “My mother use to grow them in her garden. We would pick them every morning.”

Ricky falls silent, remembering how he tried to continue the tradition with his father once his mother died. They would cut the roses one by one, each one still fresh to the point that the dew would trickle down his fingers.

“Eight pink roses, seven white ones, and three sprigs of myrtle,” he whispers, pointing to the pink and white roses that were on the bushes.

“What?”

“It’s what I would pick for my mother-it’s the same arrangement my father gave her when he asked her to marry him.”

The story of their relationship was Ricky’s favourite story, it’s the one story Ricky’s father would tell him every night.

Before his mother passed away, his father would always end the story with a smile and would say “Your mother is my soulmate.”

When his mother passed away, his father’s expression would become somber, his jaw clenching when he told the story, He would finish the story by saying “Your mother  _ was _ my soulmate.”

Ricky learned how much one word could change the story, so he stopped asking his father to tell the story.

“I thought I forgot about it,” he whispers, his voice strained because he was holding back tears. “It has been a long time...”

“Eight pink roses, seven white ones, and three sprigs of myrtle,” she repeated. “I won’t let you forget.”

Ricky looks at her, he feels warmth flowing through his chest. How could someone be so kind after meeting only hours ago?

When they finished walking through the gardens, walking past the pavilions and ponds, they stopped at the stairs-Ricky lost all track of time.

“There is one part of the garden you would love. It’s a bit of a walk-do you want to see it?”

“Yes.”

She starts to walk towards it, but as he follows, Ricky looks behind him. “Hold on, I want to stop and take a second to admire everything here.”

She tilts her head. “What’s there to admire?”

All of it. The ponds, the flowers. Even the night sky.” Ricky puts his hands by his side and looks out at Salt Lake City, looking at the city below them. “And when I look down, this view.”

“I never really thought about it like that.”

“I look at the castle every day from my room, but looking at it from this angle is so different,” Ricky said. He leans against the railing, looking at the castle glisten in the night sky and the garden down below. “This may be the last time I’m here.”

Ricky moves to sit on one of the steps, and hugs his knees to his chest. “I used to think and dream about coming to the castle. Weird that I won’t have too anymore.”

She sits beside him, sitting one step lower than him. “What else do you dream about?”

Ricky paused. Before coming here, he had so many different dreams. But they were simply just dreams. Wishes, if he would be honest; he dreamt about living a different life. Before tonight he never thought he would ever leave his home.

But he won’t tell her that.

“I want to see the rest of the world,” he slowly says, “and I want to help people—”

He stopped. He didn’t really know what else to say. He didn’t even know how he could help people-he’s only ever helped his stepmother, and how could he anyways when he was stuck inside her home?

“Any other dreams?”

Ricky bites his lips. Once the ball is over, he may never get to speak to anyone else again. He would go back to working for Lady Caswell and his stepbrothers, and he would be forgotten.

“I’d like to remember what it feels like to be loved,” he confesses, looking at his hands. 

Once the words left his mouth, he wishes he could take them back. It sounded sad, even to him. But it was true, he couldn;t remember the last time someone was nice to him, let alone danced with him or spent time with him.

To have to go back to Lady Caswell and her mistreatment of him-it was something Ricky didn’t even want to think about. He wishes this night would last forever.

“You must think I’m ridiculous,” he quickly says, before her partner could answer.

“No, I don’t.”

He doesn’t look at her but he feels her shift closer to him, to the point where their fingers are almost touching. “I understand. I wish for that sometimes too.” She takes a deep breath. “My mother used to tell me about the different types of love. Unconditional love, self-love, the love you have for your family and...romantic love.” She pauses, wanting to find the right words. “These types of love are all important for you. You said you haven;t been around many people for a long time. I’m the opposite. I’m always surrounded by people, but very few see past my...my....”

“Your heart?” Ricky asked.

Her mouth broke into a strange smile. “Yea my heart,” she gently says. Then she kisses him.

Ricky had never been kissed, he had never been in love. But when his lips touched her, it was like something inside blossomed, he felt like he was alive for the first time in forever. In this moment, everything he was worried about left and he was left with this feeling of joy that he hadn’t felt in what felt like forever.

Out of nowhere, a clock chimed, and his fairy godfather’s warning rushed to his mind:

_ At the stroke of twelve, the spell will be broken—and everything will be as it was before. _

Ricky ends the kiss. “Oh god!”

“What?”

“It’s midnight.”

“Yes, so it is.” When Ricky starts to stand, she grabs his hand. “Why does it matter—”

Ricky paused. A million different explanations came to his brain, but the only thing he could manage to say was: “Goodbye.”

“Wait, you can’t just leave—”

“But I have too,.” Ricky leaves her arms. “I have too.”

“But why?”

The clock chimed again, causing his mind to turn all fuzzy. What could he say? “Uhml, I . . . oh, the princess! I still need to meet the princess.”

“The princess?” Her brows knit together.

“Goodbye.”

Ricky runs as fast as he could through the garden and the ballroom, pausing to say goodbye to the guards in the halls. Everyone tried to get him to stay, but Ricky ignores their pleas. Even when he leaves his glass shoe on the staircase, he doesn’t think about running to grab it.

He had no time.

When he made it to his carriage, it sped out of the castle, speeding down the hills of Salt Lake City. It was the longest minute of Ricky Bowen’s life. Second by second, his blue suit faded and when the clock stopped ringing midnight, he was back in his rags, sitting on top of a pumpkin with his dog Bruno and Major his horse.

He moved out of the way when he heard a carriage coming their way. Once he’s off the road, the carriage runs over the pumpkin and smashes it into pieces.

When the carriage is gone, he catches his breath and kneels down to pick up the mice that were at one point his horses.

His head was spinning, he was reliving the last few moments from the ball. He wanted to stay there with the pretty stranger he just met; he gave her the dumbest excuse ever. He didn’t care about meeting the princess. He shakes his head, embarrassed by his reaction.

Despite the ending he still had an amazing time. He finally got to see the castle he had been dreaming off.

In the shadows, a glass shoe shined on his foot. He bends down and picks it up.

He’s shocked that even though everything else disappeared his glass shoe survived.

He holds it close to his chest. Before tonight, he didn’t believe in magic. However, tonight would never had happened if it weren’t for his fairy godfather.

He looks up to the sky. He knew his godfather was listening. “Thank you for everything.”

He carefully tucks the glass slipper into his pocket. At least he would have something to remember from the evening.

His fairy godfather’s spell was broken. Tomorrow, everything will go back to normal. His stepmother would go back to ordering him around at his house, his stepbrothers E.J. and Bowen would annoy him with all of their needs, but he still has some happiness to hold onto. Tonight opened his eyes to leaving the Caswell home, his dream could eventually come true. But he wasn’t ready to live them yet. Not immediately after the most amazing night.

However, Ricky doesn’t realize he might not have an option.


	2. Chapter 2

The morning sky wakes Ricky up the next morning. The sun’s pink rays and light make the city look brighter than normal.

Most of the young men who traveled to Salt Lake City to attend the ball were finally arriving at their homes, their feet aching from dancing all evening and their spirits feeling dejected from not receiving a single look from Princess Gina.

For Ricky, this morning was like any other morning, however he woke up happier than normal, and he even sang to himself while he made breakfast for his stepmother and stepbrothers.

Bowen and E.J. were still asleep, at least they were still sleeping as Ricky walked up the staircase to bring them their breakfast. However when he reached the top of the stairs, he heard his stepmother storm into her sons’ rooms and forcing them to get dressed.

“Everyone’s talking about it,” Lady Caswell said as Ricky brings the breakfast trays into Bowen’s room, where the family was gathered. “The entire kingdom. Hurry, he’ll be here any second.”

“Who will?” asked E.J..

“The Grand Duke. He’s been searching all night.”

“Searching?” his stepbrother asked.

“For the boy—the one who lost his shoe at the dance last night. Apparently she’s madly in love with him.”

Bowen yawned. “The duke is?”

“No, no, no. The princess!”

Ricky gasped and dropped the trays.  _ The princess? _

He was shocked. The last thing he would have guessed was that the young women he danced and spent the evening with was Princess Gina herself.

But then again, he neve expected to see her again, and never expected to find out the next morning that the heir to the throne of Utah was looking for  _ him _ .

“Pick that up, you clumsy fool.”

Obediently, Ricky knelt, but his attention was away from the broken porcelain on the floor. He listened carefully to his stepmother’s every word.

“The glass shoe is their only clue,” Lady Caswell continued. “The duke has been ordered to try it on every boy in the kingdom. And if one can be found whom the shoe fits, then, by the king’s command, that boy shall be the princess’s groom.”

_ Her groom. _

That word made Ricky’s head spin. Everything was blurry and he completely forgot about his stepmother and stepbrothers. If the princess wanted him to be her groom-that meant she...she loved him. It would mean that he wouldn’t have to work for his stepmother or live in that attic anymore. He would be free.

Without thinking, he began to hum the song that he and the princess danced to. He imagined there was an orchestra playing alongside him. He danced as he made his way back to his room to make himself look presentable for the duke. He didn’t want the Grand Duke to see him with dirt in his hair and on his clothes.

He was numb with excitement. It had been such a long time since he last felt hope.

Ricky grabs the comb beside his mirror and runs it through his hair. From his window he can see the king’s castle shining in the distance, its towers and spires glittering white. It sat on a glorious garden, with elm and spruce trees everywhere.

Ricky wondered if the princess was inside the castle, looking out from one of the tall windows and wondering where he was? Would she really want to marry him when she found out that he had the other glass shoe? He didn’t know what would happen when they would finally meet, but it didn’t matter. For once, his future was more than just dishes, cooking, his stepmother’s cruel comments and his stepbrother’s jealousy. His life was finally changing for the better.

Looking into the mirror, he looks at himself and wishes he had nicer clothes other than his work clothes.

As he puts down the brush, he looks out the window through the mirror reflection. The Grand Duke still hasn’t arrived. He hopes that he will arrive soon; he didn’t want to wait any longer. Ricky wraps his arms around himself, as he tries to calm his excitement down.

He was in his own little world that he failed to see Lady Caswell following him up the stairway to his small room in the attic, at least he failed until it was too late to stop her.

“No,” he whispered, as he finally noticed her standing behind him. His horror grows as Lady Caswell wraps her hand around the door knob. Ricky turns to try and stop her, but she has already closed the door and locked it tight.

“No!” Ricky pounds his fists on the door. “You can’t keep me in here! Please! You can’t. You just can’t’.”

Lady Caswell’s footsteps were already quieting as she quickly walked down the stairs. Ricky collapses against the door.

It was no use; his stepmother wasn’t coming back. He was trapped.

Below, the gates outside creaked open. Horses nickered, and the heavy wheels of a carriage trundled onto the driveway.

The Grand Duke had arrived.

A burst of hope swelled in his chest. Ricky picks himself up and runs to his window, trying desperately to gain the duke’s attention.

“Your Grace!” he shouted, waving. “Over here! Please, help me!”

Below, the footman helped the Grand Duke out of the carriage. He cast an odd shadow, thin but for the paunch at his belly, with an egg-shaped head. A tall blue hat capped his black hair, its bright red feather matching the sash around his torso. As Lady Caswell meets him outside, he walks quickly to the door, giving the quickest of hellos to Lady Caswell.

“Your Grace!” Ricky tried again. Louder, this time.

But the duke disappeared into the house.

He hadn’t heard him. No one had, and no one would. After all, he was locked away in the highest tower his house had, he was so high up he could look down at tree tops. He had no chance at getting the duke’s attention.

Anger burned at the back of Ricky’s throat but he pushed it down. He never questioned his stepmother’s cruelty. For many years, he had grown used to it and even forgave Lady Caswell and her sons each night for the way they treated him.

However, today his stepmother took away a dream Ricky had just started to believe would come true-and she ruined it. And now Ricky was stuck more than ever.

Mice scurry out from their hiding places and start to nibble on his pants.

Normally Ricky would smile at the sight of the mice, but as he blinks his tears away, he turns away from the mice.

“I just want to be alone,” he softly tells them.

The mice do not understand him and start circling around him.

For as long as Ricky can remember the mice and Bruno were his only company. They were much more enjoyable than his stepbrothers. And until last night, they were the only people Ricky spoke in weeks, probably even months.

His heart begins to ache as he remembers the easy conversation-with Gina, the princess. If only he had known who she was.

_ What would it have changed? I would still have run off at midnight, wouldn’t I? _

Unclear of the answer, he sighs and watches the mice leave the room and disappear back into the walls. 

He wishes  _ he _ could leave the room as easily as they did, but no one was coming to his rescue, not even the mice.

He takes a deep breath and steadies himself. He used to spend hours each night wondering what he did to have his stepmother hate him as much as she does. His attempts to obey Lady Caswell so she would like him only made her more angry. As Ricky got older, he gave up and just tried to make each day easier to tolerate.

Time inched on. Ricky has no idea how long he’s been locked in his room, drying his tears and telling himself that everything will be okay. After what seems like forever, the gates outside his house closed again.

He gets up and walks toward the window, and leans on the wooden sill as he watches the Grand Duke’s carriage leave his father’s home and disappear into the street. His stepmother did not see the duke leave, which meant that neither E.J. or Bowen fit the glass show.

Ricky was not surprised and he felt some relief at the fact that his stepbrothers were not victorious in trying to win the princess’s heart.

_ Maybe now everything will go back to the way it was. _

He pushes his lips into a fine line; only an idiot would believe that.

Things couldn’t go back to the way they were. Also, now that he had seen what life could be like outside of his house-for the first time since his father died-how could be possible think about staying the servant to his stepbrothers and stepmother?

Stifling a sigh, not everything is lost, he thinks. I still have the other glass shoe.

But what good would that do him here? Storm clouds brewed in the distance, a bitter breeze gusting into his room. Ricky shut the window, but his hand lingered on the pane.

For so long, Ricky had ignored the tug in his heart to leave. How could she go when this place was all he knew—when it was all she had left of his loving parents? How did he know that life out there would be any better than the one he suffered here? Not to mention the fact that he had nowhere to go, no plan for how to support himself. There weren’t a lot of options for a penniless orphan.

Besides, Lady Caswell and her sons were the only family he had left. So even though he despised them, he stayed.  _ Father would have wanted me to help take care of them, he would tell himself. _

However, this was the first time, he was beginning to think that that was untrue.

This was the first time he saw that Lady Caswell would never want Ricky to succeed, that anytime Ricky would come close to feeling joy she would destroy it.

It was like Ricky summoned Lady Caswell, he could hear her footsteps, getting louder as she climbed up the stairs. However, this time she was not alone.

“Can you believe the nerve of that man?” Bowen huffed. “That was clearly my shoe. My shoe!”

“Your shoe?” said E.J.. “That’s funny.”

Their mother yelled at them. “Boys! Some dignity.”

Ricky’s stepbrothers were silent, but for only a moment.

Bowen was the first to speak. He was slightly out of breath when he said “Why are we up here? It’s so dark and dusty.”

“I think I heard a mouse,” E.J. added. “Mother, why can’t he come downstairs? 

“Why are we going to him? That’s so—”

“Quiet, you two,” Lady Caswell said sharply. “No more complaining.”

Ricky braced himself. He could tell that his stepmother was not in a good mood. But Ricky is no longer afraid-what more could she do to him? The Grand Duke left and he wasn’t returning for him. He would be looking for another boy whose foot would fit the glass shoe and would marry the princess-a boy who was not named Ricky Bowen.

The footsteps were getting closer. “It’s time you see the real Ricky Bowen,” Lady Caswell said. “He directly disobeyed orders and found his way to the ball.”

Ricky froze. How did his stepmother find out he was at the ball?

He arrived home before they did, and everything was back to normal in the morning, at least until she said the news—

The song he had been singing-it was from the dance last night. Ricky felt a chill travel down his spine. Did his stepmother hear him singing?

If she did, then Lady Caswell would know that Ricky is the boy with the glass shoe-the boy the princess was looking for.

That’s why she had followed him upstairs and locked him in his room without telling him-it all made sense. But the Grand Duke left, so what could she do to him now?

_ I will not apologize _ , Ricky tells himself proudly,  _ not for going to the ball. _

As the key clicked into the lock and the doorknob began to turn, Ricky took a deep breath, gathering his nerves—

—and fearing that he was just as trapped as ever.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> thank you for reading, please let me know how you feel in the comments

**Author's Note:**

> thank you for reading, please let me know how you feel in the comments


End file.
